About Upstate Institute
Upstate Events
Service Learning
Research Projects
LifeLong Learning
Projects
Philanthropy Council
Contact Us

 

 

Lifelong Learning Program

The Lifelong Learning Program is an opportunity for experiencing the joy of learning! The LLP is a collaboration by Colgate University and the community to provide adults with ongoing education for the enrichment of their lives in a diversity of fields. The LLP is a membership organization run by its members, all of whom are LLP students. The program gives members access to an unlimited number of programs, seminars and special events. Lifelong Learning programs have been called a "health club for the brain". Membership in the LLP develops insight, stimulates curiosity and satisfies the intellect. The LLP provides an opportunity for social interaction and intellectual gain in a group atmosphere. Members have the opportunity to develop new ideas and gain a better understanding of the community, the world and oneself!

Need more information?

For more information, contact the Upstate Institute at LLP@colgate.edu or 315-228-6623

 

 

Members: Click here to Register for classes!

 

 

 Current Courses

   

The Study of Religion

Distinct from Theology, "Religious Studies" takes a detached view in understanding the phenomenon of Religion. Using lectures from the "Great Courses" series on the "Introduction to Religion" the course will examine some of the ways in which Religion has been understood since the Enlightenment by such thinkers as; David Hume, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Sigmund Freud, Karl Jung, among others.

Date & Time: Mondays and Thursdays, January 7, 11, 14, 18, 21, 25, 28, from 3 - 4:30 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Dr. John Morris, former dean of the faculty and former interim president of Colgate University

 

The Man behind the Mural: Lee Brown Coye's Masterpiece

Tour the works of Lee Brown Coye's murals with Denise Leone for an in-depth perspective on the art works. Hamilton is home to several of Coye works and this program will be a guided walking tour to view them.

Date & Time: Wednesday, January 13 from 4 – 5 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Denise Stillwaggon Leone

 

Social Networking

The rapid growth of computer technology and the internet have led to the creation of numerous social networking tools, such as MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, and AOL Instant Messenger. This course will explain what these networking tools are and will clarify the differences between them. Participants will learn how to set up and maintain their own individualized accounts with various social networking sites. The course will also cover issues of online privacy and security surrounding social networking sites. Participants will finish the course knowing how to safely use these social networking tools as a means of staying in touch with friends, family, and colleagues; or to promote or advertise a certain cause or product.

Date & Time: Tuesdays, February 2, 9, and 16 from 4:15 - 5:45 p

Location: Case-Geyer 345 Picker Classroom

Facilitator: Megan Heise, Colgate University Class of‘10

 

'Look-up!' Biodiversity in the Rainforest Canopy

Dr. Catherine Cardelús, Colgate University, Department of Biology

Dr. Cardelús will discuss her research on the diversity of canopy plants (vascular epiphytes) along a 3000m elevation gradient in Costa Rica. Her lecture will explore the potential impacts of global warming and land-use change on the diversity on epiphytes in particular and lowland rainforest diversity in general. For more detail on this published research visit http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/sci;322/5899/258

Date & Time: Wednesday, February 3 from 3:30 – 5:30 pm

Location: Colgate Bookstore, 3rd Floor Community Room

Facilitator: Dr. Catherine Cardelús, Professor of Biology, Colgate University

 

Legal and Financials Aspects Involved in Preparing for Long-term Care

This will be one session given by Mr. St. Leger’s law firm, touching on the various considerations involved with preparing for illness, legal aspects thereof, and financial concerns. Wills, power of attorney, health directives, and ways to protect assets will be discussed.

Date & Time: Wednesday, February 10 from 5 – 6:30 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Michael St. Leger, Esq., from Dunn, Bruno, St. Leger, Attorneys, Oneida and Hamilton

 

Two Shakespearean Playhouses

Dr. Susan Cerasano, Edgar W. B. Fairchild Professor of Literature, Colgate University, English Department

This course will explore two playhouses with Shakespearean associations—the Rose (1587-1600) and the Globe (1600-1616)—by looking at evidence gathered from archaeology, performance history, theatre history, biography, and two plays that were probably written for the opening of the new Globe in 1600—Henry V and Julius Caesar.  Topics will include actors and acting companies, current archaeological findings related to the Rose, commercial contexts for the new “capitalist playhouses,” theatre owners and the theatrical account diary kept by the owner of the Rose, and the playwright’s profession.  There will be some lecture, but conversation will be very welcomed. 

Two books will be required for the course. These books are available at the Colgate Bookstore:

William Shakespeare, Henry V (ed. A. R. Braunmuller, the Pelican Shakespeare): Penguin Classics (1999), ISBN-10: 0140714588, ISBN-13: 978-0140714586

William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar (ed. Paul Werstine and Barbara Mowat, the Folger Shakespeare): Simon & Schuster (2005), ISBN-10: 0743484932, ISBN-13: 978-0743484930

Date & Time: Wednesdays, February 17, 24 and March 3, 10, 24 and 31st from 3 - 4:30 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Dr. Susan Cerasano, Edgar W. B. Fairchild Professor of Literature, Colgate University

 

Local Issues Local Answers: Understanding and Dealing with Current Issues in Madison County

This three part series offers information and statistics on community need in the areas of the economy, the environment, and education in Madison County.

Environment, February 25: Patients have long been advised to flush unused pharmaceuticals down the toilet; now trace amounts of drugs have began showing up in the nation’s water supply.  Van Bartlett, Lead Trainer, Environmental Training Center, Morrisville State College will explain how flushing drugs effect water quality.  Mary Bartlett, Director, RSVP of Madison County discusses Madison County’s ‘Safe Pill Drop-Off’ program.

Economy, March 4: Karen Baase, Association Issue Leader of Cornell Cooperative Extension and Becca Jablonski, Program Director of the Madison County Agriculture Economic Development Program will discuss background information about agriculture and the economy in Madison County.

Education, March 11: Madison County has identified education needs in the area of adult literacy and social competencies for disadvantaged youth. Representatives from Madison County Reads Ahead, an adult literacy program, will present results of the Literacy Needs Assessment for Madison County and discuss the expansion of the literacy program into seven county libraries. Community Action Partnership’s Youth Mentoring Program Director JoAnne Morak will discuss the community need for mentoring in Madison County.

Date & Time: Thursdays, February 25, March 4 and 11 from 4 -5:30 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Mary Bartlett, Director RSVP of Madison County

 

Inside Autism

Autism is becoming more prevalent and schools and communities are working hard to provide the best adaptations for those children who have that diagnosis. But what is it? Come and find out what is going on inside the mind of a person with autism: the differences in brain development that causes the profile that we see. We will also explore the simple but effective modifications that allow people with autism to learn. Janet O’Flynn is a pediatric occupational therapist presently working for Madison-Oneida BOCES in Oneida and Vernon. She has worked with the autism support team in Vineyard Haven MA and has studied autism as part of her Masters in Early Childhood Special Education in Syracuse.

Date & Time: Saturdays, February 27, March 6 and 13 from 10 - 11:30 am

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Janet O’Flynn

 

Meditation as Medicine – Advanced Series

This will be an advanced, continuation of last semester’s session*. The daily practice of meditation has been demonstrated to promote healing on many levels.  Enhanced awareness of our bodies, our minds, our breath and our symptoms enables us to find ways to self-heal.  Mark J. Sicherman, MD is a physician and psychotherapist and has been studying and teaching meditation for over 30 years.  NOTE: Please do not eat directly before the class.

*Please email LLP@colgate.edu if you did not attend the fall session but are interested in learning meditation.

Date & Time: Mondays, March 1, 8, 15, 22, from 5 – 6 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Mark J. Sicherman, MD

 

Picker Art Gallery Exhibition: Broadcast

Curator Joachim Homann PhD, will join us and present Broadcast. Organized by Independent Curators International and the Baltimore Museum of Contemporary Art, Broadcast explores the ways in which artists since the late 1960s have engaged with, critiqued, and inserted themselves into official channels of broadcast television and radio. By co-opting the sounds, images, and presentation strategies of our culture’s dominant forms of mass media, they reveal the mechanisms and power structures of broadcasting systems, and challenge their authority and influence. For more information visit http://picker.colgate.edu

Date & Time: Tuesday, March 9, from 4 – 5:30 pm

Location: Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University

Facilitator: Dr. Joachim Homann, curator, Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University

 

The Atomic Bombinig of Hiroshima: Some Retrospective Judgments

Dr. Andrew Rotter, Colgate University, Department of History

The atomic bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, was one of the pivotal events in human history.  Debate still rages over key issues.  Why was the bomb used?  Was the bombing--and the bombing of Nagasaki, three days later--necessary to end the war against Japan?  Did the atomic bomb cross a moral threshhold because of its special destructiveness?  This lecture will consider these and other questions, and invite the audience to help answer them.

Date & Time: Thursday, March 25 from 3:30 – 5:30 pm

Location: Colgate Bookstore, 3rd Floor Community Room

Facilitator: Dr. Andrew Rotter, Professor of History, Colgate University

 

Sustainability Part 2: Globally, In Practice, In Our Everyday Lives

John Pumilio, Colgate University’s Sustainability Coordinator, will present his second lecture on the global scenario of sustainability. He will focus on sustainability in practice using Colgate as an example, as well as sustainability in our daily lives and how to lead a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. He will include a brief refresher from his fall session; therefore you need not have attended Part 1.

Date & Time: Thursday, April 1, from 3:30 – 5:30 pm

Location: Colgate Bookstore, 3rd Floor

Facilitator: John Pumilio, Sustainability Coordinator, Colgate University

 

Lyme and Tick Borne Disease, an Emerging National Epidemic

Lyme disease is an emerging national epidemic, with reported cases rising by 78% in 2008. New York State has been near the top of this list for reported cases and we are now experiencing a rapid rise in Central NYS of this difficult illness. Harvey will discuss the etiology of Lyme disease, the spirochetes that cause it, diagnosis and treatment as well as ways to limit one’s risk of getting it. Debbie will discuss the manifestation and effects of Lyme on children. Harvey L. Kliman, Ph.D. and Debbie Kliman, Ed.D founded the non-profit Lyme Disease Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Inc. Debbie Kliman, Ed.D also has published several articles on children and Lyme as well as treating children in her practice as a clinical psychologist. For more information visit lymepa.org

Date & Time: Wednesdays, April 7 and 14 from 4 - 6 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitators: Harvey L. Kliman, Ph.D. and Debbie Kliman, Ed.D.

 

Reading the Bible in America

Dr. Lesleigh Cushing, Colgate University, Department of Religion

This course focuses on the ways that the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) gets read and used in American culture and politics.  We will look at what the Bible says (or doesn't say) about a range of issues, from the role of women to the death penalty to stem cell research.

Date & Time: Thursdays April 8, 15, 22, 29 from 1 – 3 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Dr. Lesleigh Cushing, Professor of Religion, Colgate University

 

Golf, the Game of Life

This class will be an approach to improving your golf game or other game skills as well as looking at ways to revisit how your life is unfolding. The book, Golf: The Game of Life, by Arthur Rashap (Colgate class of ’58) is recommended. For discount copies of the book prior to the class contact Arthur Rashap at arthur.rashap@gmail.com

Date & Time: Saturdays in April 10, 17, 24 from 10 – 11:30 am

Location: Wooster Room, 1st Floor Huntington Gym, Colgate University Campus

Facilitator: Arthur Rashap, J.D.

 

Picker Art Gallery Exhibition: Underhill/Weston Photography Show

Curator Joachim Homann PhD, will present two shows: Landscape Close-up: Photographs from Brett Weston Archive and Faculty Focus: Linn Underhill.  For more information visit http://picker.colgate.edu

Landscape Close-up: Photographs from Brett Weston Archive: Brett Weston (1911-1993), son and apprentice of Edward Weston, developed his own photographic vision by combining close-ups with strong black and white contrasts, reducing his subjects to pure form. Although he traveled to and photographed in locations around the world, Weston, in later years, was most attached to the landscapes of Hawaii.

Faculty Focus: Linn Underhill: Linn Underhill (b. 1936), photographer and associate professor of art and art history at Colgate University, has won critical acclaim for her series of portraits and self-portraits that investigate femininity, social roles, and the process of aging.

Date & Time: Tuesday, May 4, from 4 – 5:30 pm

Location: Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University

Facilitator: Dr. Joachim Homann, curator, Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University

 

Ruling the World 2010: Congressional Republicans vs. Obama Democrats

American leadership rules the world primarily because of its economic competitiveness and political influence. With the decline of our economy and rise of partisan politics, our world leadership is threatened. Control of Congress has a great deal to do with both. What should advocates of American leadership do about the upcoming 2010 elections? Dick Cheshire PhD is a retired college president, professor, and development officer who is a regular teaching leadership classes for Colgate LLP.

Date & Time: Wednesdays, May 12, 19, 26 from 4 - 5:30 pm

Location: Hamilton Public Library

Facilitator: Dick Cheshire, Ph.D.

 

 

Partner Events

The following events are hosted by other organizations but may be of interest to our members. Please note that these may have a separate registration and/or attendance fee! Please contact the host organization for more information or to register.
 

Ongoing Partner Events:

 

Emerging Cinema at Hamilton Theater: Remember that Lifelong Learning Program members receive discounted admission to these films, offered Sunday through Thursday at 5:30 pm. The discounted rate for LLP members is $5.50 a ticket. Click here for the Hamilton Theater website

 

Hamilton Book & Movie Club: The Colgate Bookstore and the Hamilton Movie Theater partner to offer this Book & Movie club, which provides three evenings of entertainment, including a private film screening of a film adapted from that month's book selection, followed by a light dinner and lively discussion at the Bookstore. To join the club, or for more information, a list of featured selections, and screening dates, visit www.colgatebookstore.com/bookmovie

You may also contact Heather Elia at 228-6944 or helia@colgate.edu.

 

Education Unlimited: For more information visit www.educationunlimitedofa.org/

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

What are the benefits?

  • The Lifelong Learning program gives members access to an unlimited number of programs, seminars and special events.

  • Lifelong Learning programs have been called a "health club for the brain." Membership in an LLP develops insight, stimulates curiosity and satisfies the intellect.

  • The LLP provides an opportunity for social interaction and intellectual gain in a group atmosphere.

  • The LLP allows members to develop new ideas and gain a better understanding of the community, the world and oneself!

PLUS:

  • All LLP members receive a 20% discount at the Colgate Bookstore any day of the week on most items.

  • All LLP members have borrowing privileges at the Case-Geyer Library at Colgate.

  • All LLP members receive discounted admission to the Emerging Cinemas offerings at the Hamilton Theater.

Who can join?

  • The Lifelong Learning program is open to any adult who is interested in continuing to learn and spend time with like minded individuals.

  • The desire to learn is the sole criterion for membership. There are no educational requirements.

What’s required?

  • An individual annual  membership of $30 allows one to attend all events offered through the program. Family memberships are obtainable for $55. Scholarships are available!

  • To attend courses, members must enroll.

 Who’s in charge?

  • The Lifelong Learning program is sponsored by the Upstate Institute at Colgate University

  • A steering team of community members and Upstate Institute staff have developed and guided the Lifelong Learning program. Future planning will involve the membership functioning through a committee structure.

 What opportunities are offered?

  • The program includes peer-taught and faculty-led courses as well as special events, lectures and discussion groups.

  • A list of the courses being offered each semester is published in the Lifelong Learning Program newsletter and on the Upstate Institute website.

Need more information?

For more information, contact Rebecca Brenner, Upstate Institute  at LLP@colgate.edu or 315-228-6623

 

 

 

 

 

 

Membership Information:

Membership Application to Join the Lifelong Learning Program

Are you interested in teaching a class? Click here to download a printable Course Proposal form

 

Other helpful links:

 

The Steering Committee 09-10: (top left) Dick Cheshire, Rebecca Brenner, Shirley Reynolds, Nancy Roberts, Irene Brown, Lorna Wilson, (bottom left) John Stockton, Joanne Geyer, Debbie Kliman, Arthur Rashap

 

From the Steering Committee:

Our Plan for Curriculum

The Lifelong Learning Program of Colgate University's Upstate Institute is a community-based collaboration by the University and its central New York neighbors to provide adults of all ages with ongoing education for the enrichment of their lives in a diversity of fields.

Lifelong learning provides an opportunity for social interaction and intellectual gain in a group atmosphere. It allows members to develop new ideas and a better understanding of the community, the world and oneself.
 

Since lifelong learning aims always to improve the all-around well-being of people, more specifically it seeks to offer educational experiences in five basic areas that may provide guidance to help create happier and healthier lives for its members through:

1. Personal Enrichment: to extend one's general education including literature, history, science, philosophy and religion, music and art appreciation, politics and economics, social issues, global perspectives, and current events.
2. Community Leadership: to increase community awareness and develop leadership while examining methods to improve the functioning of all size communities (family to global.)
3. Life Management: to develop and implement plans related to physical, mental and financial health.
4. Societal Changes: to understand and respond to new technologies, forms of communication, social values and networks, and cultural phenomena associated with major change.
5. Sustainability: to live productively in ways that is fulfilling and long-lasting with beneficial impact on the environment and other legacies for future generations.

Lifelong learners are here to enjoy learning. There are no tests. A desire to learn is the sole criterion for participation. Membership helps develop insight, stimulate curiosity and satisfy the intellect.

Our goal, therefore, is to help the lifelong learner achieve greater balance in personal and community life encompassing social, political and economic activities.

photo: Chenango Canal Walk, 5/10/09